Frequently used shortcuts

This table lists the most frequently used shortcuts in Excel.

To do this Press
Close a workbook. Ctrl+W
Open a workbook. Ctrl+O
Go to the Home tab. Alt+H
Save a workbook. Ctrl+S
Copy selection. Ctrl+C
Paste selection. Ctrl+V
Undo recent action. Ctrl+Z
Remove cell contents. Delete
Choose a fill color. Alt+H, H
Cut selection. Ctrl+X
Go to the Insert tab. Alt+N
Apply bold formatting. Ctrl+B
Center align cell contents. Alt+H, A, C
To do this Press
Go to the Page Layout tab. Alt+P
Go to the Data tab. Alt+A
Go to the View tab. Alt+W
Open the context menu. Shift+F10 or

Windows Menu key

Add borders. Alt+H, B
Delete column. Alt+H, D, C
Go to the Formula tab. Alt+M
Hide the selected rows. Ctrl+9
Hide the selected columns. Ctrl+0

Use the Access keys for ribbon tabs

To go directly to a tab on the ribbon, press one of the following access keys.
Additional tabs might appear depending on your selection in the worksheet.
To do this Press
Move to the Tell me or Search field on the Alt+Q, then
ribbon and type a search term for assistance or enter the
Help content. search term.
Open the File menu. Alt+F
Open the Home tab and format text and Alt+H
numbers and use the Find tool.
Open the Insert tab and insert PivotTables, Alt+N
charts, add-ins, Sparklines, pictures, shapes,
headers, or text boxes.
Open the Page Layout tab and work with Alt+P
themes, page setup, scale, and alignment.
Open the Formulas tab and insert, trace, and Alt+M
customize functions and calculations.
To do this Press
Open the Data tab and connect to, sort, filter, Alt+A
analyze, and work with data.
Open the Review tab and check spelling, add Alt+R
notes and threaded comments, and protect
sheets and workbooks.
Open the View tab and preview page breaks and layouts, show and hide
gridlines and headings, set zoom magnification, manage windows and panes,
and view macros.

Work in the ribbon with the keyboard

To do this Press
Select the active tab on the ribbon and Alt or F10. To move to a different tab, use access keys or
activate the access keys. the arrow keys.
Move the focus to commands on the Tab key or Shift+Tab
ribbon.
To do this Press
Move down, up, left, or right, respectively, Arrow keys
among the items on the ribbon.
Show the tooltip for the ribbon element Ctrl+Shift+F10
currently in focus.
Activate a selected button. Spacebar or Enter
Open the list for a selected command. Down arrow key
Open the menu for a selected button. Alt+Down arrow key
When a menu or submenu is open, move Down arrow key
to the next command.
Expand or collapse the ribbon. Ctrl+F1
Open a context menu. Shift+F10

Or, on a Windows keyboard, the Windows Menu key

Move to the submenu when a main menu
is open or selected.
Move from one group of controls to
another.
(usually between the Alt Gr and right Ctrl keys)
Left arrow key
Ctrl+Left or Right arrow key
Keyboard shortcuts for navigating in cells
To do this Press
Move to the previous cell in a worksheet or the previous option in Shift+Tab
a dialog box.
Move one cell up in a worksheet. Up arrow key
Move one cell down in a worksheet. Down arrow key
Move one cell left in a worksheet. Left arrow key
Move one cell right in a worksheet. Right arrow key
Move to the edge of the current data region in a worksheet. Ctrl+Arrow key
Enter the End mode, move to the next nonblank cell in the same End, Arrow key
column or row as the active cell, and turn off End mode. If the cells
are blank, move to the last cell in the row or column.
Move to the last cell on a worksheet, to the lowest used row of the Ctrl+End
rightmost used column.
Extend the selection of cells to the last used cell on the worksheet Ctrl+Shift+End
(lower-right corner).
Move to the cell in the upper-left corner of the window when Scroll Home+Scroll lock
lock is turned on.
Move to the beginning of a worksheet. Ctrl+Home
Move one screen down in a worksheet. Page down
To do this Press
Move to the next sheet in a workbook. Ctrl+Page down
Move one screen to the right in a worksheet. Alt+Page down
Move one screen up in a worksheet. Page up
Move one screen to the left in a worksheet. Alt+Page up
Move to the previous sheet in a workbook. Ctrl+Page up
Move one cell to the right in a worksheet. Or, in a protected Tab key
worksheet, move between unlocked cells.
Open the list of validation choices on a cell that has data validation Alt+Down arrow key
option applied to it.
Cycle through floating shapes, such as text boxes or images. Ctrl+Alt+5, then the Tab key
repeatedly
Exit the floating shape navigation and return to the normal Esc
navigation.
Scroll horizontally. Ctrl+Shift, then scroll your mouse
wheel up to go left, down to go
right
Zoom in. Ctrl+Alt+Equal sign ( = )
Zoom out. Ctrl+Alt+Minus sign (-)
Keyboard shortcuts for formatting cells
To do this Press
Open the Format Cells dialog box. Ctrl+1
Format fonts in the Format Cells dialog box. Ctrl+Shift+F or
Ctrl+Shift+P
Edit the active cell and put the insertion point at the end of its contents. Or, F2
if editing is turned off for the cell, move the insertion point into the formula
bar. If editing a formula, toggle Point mode off or on so you can use the
arrow keys to create a reference.
Insert a note. Shift+F2

Open and edit a cell note. Shift+F2

Insert a threaded comment. Ctrl+Shift+F2

Open and reply to a threaded comment. Ctrl+Shift+F2

Open the Insert dialog box to insert blank cells. Ctrl+Shift+Plus sign (+)
Open the Delete dialog box to delete selected cells. Ctrl+Minus sign (-)
Enter the current time. Ctrl+Shift+Colon (:)
Enter the current date. Ctrl+Semicolon (;)
Switch between displaying cell values or formulas in the worksheet. Ctrl+Grave accent (`)
To do this Press
Copy a formula from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the Ctrl+Apostrophe (')
formula bar.
Move the selected cells. Ctrl+X
Copy the selected cells. Ctrl+C
Paste content at the insertion point, replacing any selection. Ctrl+V
Open the Paste Special dialog box. Ctrl+Alt+V
Italicize text or remove italic formatting. Ctrl+I or Ctrl+3
Bold text or remove bold formatting. Ctrl+B or Ctrl+2
Underline text or remove underline. Ctrl+U or Ctrl+4
Apply or remove strikethrough formatting. Ctrl+5
Switch between hiding objects, displaying objects, and displaying Ctrl+6
placeholders for objects.
Apply an outline border to the selected cells. Ctrl+Shift+Ampersand
sign (&)
Remove the outline border from the selected cells. Ctrl+Shift+Underscore (_)
Display or hide the outline symbols. Ctrl+8
Use the Fill Down command to copy the contents and format of the Ctrl+D
topmost cell of a selected range into the cells below.
Apply the General number format. Ctrl+Shift+Tilde sign (~)
To do this Press
Apply the Currency format with two decimal places (negative numbers in Ctrl+Shift+Dollar sign ($)
parentheses).
Apply the Percentage format with no decimal places. Ctrl+Shift+Percent sign
(%)
Apply the Scientific number format with two decimal places. Ctrl+Shift+Caret sign (^)
Apply the Date format with the day, month, and year. Ctrl+Shift+Number sign
(#)
Apply the Time format with the hour and minute, and AM or PM. Ctrl+Shift+At sign (@)
Apply the Number format with two decimal places, thousands separator, Ctrl+Shift+Exclamation
and minus sign (-) for negative values. point (!)
Open the Insert hyperlink dialog box. Ctrl+K
Check spelling in the active worksheet or selected range. F7
Display the Quick Analysis options for selected cells that contain data. Ctrl+Q
Display the Create Table dialog box. Ctrl+L or Ctrl+T
Open the Workbook Statistics dialog box. Ctrl+Shift+G
Keyboard shortcuts for making selections and
performing actions
To do this Press
Select the entire worksheet. Ctrl+A or Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar
Select the current and next sheet in a workbook. Ctrl+Shift+Page down
Select the current and previous sheet in a workbook. Ctrl+Shift+Page up
Extend the selection of cells by one cell. Shift+Arrow key
Extend the selection of cells to the last nonblank cell in the Ctrl+Shift+Arrow key
same column or row as the active cell, or if the next cell is
blank, to the next nonblank cell.
Turn extend mode on and use the arrow keys to extend a F8
selection. Press again to turn off.
Add a non-adjacent cell or range to a selection of cells by Shift+F8
using the arrow keys.
Start a new line in the same cell. Alt+Enter
Fill the selected cell range with the current entry. Ctrl+Enter
Complete a cell entry and select the cell above. Shift+Enter
Select an entire column in a worksheet. Ctrl+Spacebar
To do this Press
Select an entire row in a worksheet. Shift+Spacebar
Select all objects on a worksheet when an object is selected. Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar
Extend the selection of cells to the beginning of the Ctrl+Shift+Home
worksheet.
Select the current region if the worksheet contains data. Press Ctrl+A or Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar
a second time to select the current region and its summary
rows. Press a third time to select the entire worksheet.
Select the current region around the active cell. Ctrl+Shift+Asterisk sign (*)
Select the first command on the menu when a menu or Home
submenu is visible.
Repeat the last command or action, if possible. Ctrl+Y
Undo the last action. Ctrl+Z
Expand grouped rows or columns. While hovering over the collapsed items,
press and hold the Shift key and scroll
down.
Collapse grouped rows or columns. While hovering over the expanded
items, press and hold the Shift key and
scroll up.
Keyboard shortcuts for working with data,
functions, and the formula bar
To do this Press
Turn on or off tooltips for checking formulas directly in the formula bar or in Ctrl+Alt+P
the cell you’re editing.
Edit the active cell and put the insertion point at the end of its contents. Or, if F2
editing is turned off for the cell, move the insertion point into the formula bar.
If editing a formula, toggle Point mode off or on so you can use the arrow keys
to create a reference.
Expand or collapse the formula bar. Ctrl+Shift+U
Cancel an entry in the cell or formula bar. Esc
Complete an entry in the formula bar and select the cell below. Enter
Move the cursor to the end of the text when in the formula bar. Ctrl+End
Select all text in the formula bar from the cursor position to the end. Ctrl+Shift+End
Calculate all worksheets in all open workbooks. F9
Calculate the active worksheet. Shift+F9
Calculate all worksheets in all open workbooks, regardless of whether they have Ctrl+Alt+F9
changed since the last calculation.
To do this Press
Check dependent formulas, and then calculate all cells in all open workbooks, Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F9
including cells not marked as needing to be calculated.
Display the menu or message for an Error Checking button. Alt+Shift+F10
Display the Function Arguments dialog box when the insertion point is to the Ctrl+A
right of a function name in a formula.
Insert argument names and parentheses when the insertion point is to the right Ctrl+Shift+A
of a function name in a formula.
Insert the AutoSum formula Alt+Equal sign ( = )
Invoke Flash Fill to automatically recognize patterns in adjacent columns and fill Ctrl+E
the current column
Cycle through all combinations of absolute and relative references in a formula F4
if a cell reference or range is selected.
Insert a function. Shift+F3
Copy the value from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the formula Ctrl+Shift+Straight
bar. quotation mark (")
Create an embedded chart of the data in the current range. Alt+F1
Create a chart of the data in the current range in a separate Chart sheet. F11
Define a name to use in references. Alt+M, M, D
Paste a name from the Paste Name dialog box (if names have been defined in F3
the workbook).
Move to the first field in the next record of a data form. Enter
To do this Press
Create, run, edit, or delete a macro. Alt+F8
Open the Microsoft Visual Basic For Applications Editor. Alt+F11
Open the Power Query Editor Alt+F12

Keyboard shortcuts for refreshing external

data
Use the following keys to refresh data from external data sources.
To do this Press
Stop a refresh operation. Esc
Refresh data in the current worksheet. Ctrl+F5
Refresh all data in the workbook. Ctrl+Alt+F5
Power Pivot keyboard shortcuts
Use the following keyboard shortcuts with Power Pivot in Microsoft 365, Excel
2019, Excel 2016, and Excel 2013.
To do this Press
Open the context menu for the selected cell, column, or row. Shift+F10
Select the entire table. Ctrl+A
Copy selected data. Ctrl+C
Delete the table. Ctrl+D
Move the table. Ctrl+M
Rename the table. Ctrl+R
Save the file. Ctrl+S
Redo the last action. Ctrl+Y
Undo the last action. Ctrl+Z
Select the current column. Ctrl+Spacebar
Select the current row. Shift+Spacebar
Select all cells from the current location to the last cell of the column. Shift+Page down
Select all cells from the current location to the first cell of the column. Shift+Page up
To do this Press
Select all cells from the current location to the last cell of the row. Shift+End
Select all cells from the current location to the first cell of the row. Shift+Home
Move to the previous table. Ctrl+Page up
Move to the next table. Ctrl+Page down
Move to the first cell in the upper-left corner of selected table. Ctrl+Home
Move to the last cell in the lower-right corner of selected table. Ctrl+End
Move to the first cell of the selected row. Ctrl+Left arrow key
Move to the last cell of the selected row. Ctrl+Right arrow key
Move to the first cell of the selected column. Ctrl+Up arrow key
Move to the last cell of selected column. Ctrl+Down arrow key
Close a dialog box or cancel a process, such as a paste operation. Ctrl+Esc
Open the AutoFilter Menu dialog box. Alt+Down arrow key
Open the Go To dialog box. F5

Function keys
Key Description
F1 ▪ F1 alone: displays the Excel Help task pane.
▪ Ctrl+F1: displays or hides the ribbon.
▪ Alt+F1: creates an embedded chart of the data in the current range.
▪ Alt+Shift+F1: inserts a new worksheet.
▪ Ctrl+Shift+F1: toggles full screen mode

F2 ▪ F2 alone: edit the active cell and put the insertion point at the end of its contents. Or, if
editing is turned off for the cell, move the insertion point into the formula bar. If editing
a formula, toggle Point mode off or on so you can use the arrow keys to create a
reference.
▪ Shift+F2: adds or edits a cell note.
▪ Ctrl+F2: displays the print preview area on the Print tab in the Backstage view.

F3 ▪ F3 alone: displays the Paste Name dialog box. Available only if names have been
defined in the workbook.
▪ Shift+F3: displays the Insert Function dialog box.

F4 ▪ F4 alone: repeats the last command or action, if possible.

When a cell reference or range is selected in a formula, F4 cycles through all the various
combinations of absolute and relative references.

▪ Ctrl+F4: closes the selected workbook window.

▪ Alt+F4: closes Excel.
Key Description
F5 ▪ F5 alone: displays the Go To dialog box.
▪ Ctrl+F5: restores the window size of the selected workbook window.

F6 ▪ F6 alone: switches between the worksheet, ribbon, task pane, and Zoom controls. In a
worksheet that has been split, F6 includes the split panes when switching between panes
and the ribbon area.
▪ Shift+F6: switches between the worksheet, Zoom controls, task pane, and ribbon.
▪ Ctrl+F6: switches between two Excel windows.
▪ Ctrl+Shift+F6: switches between all Excel windows.

F7 ▪ F7 alone: Opens the Spelling dialog box to check spelling in the active worksheet or
selected range.
▪ Ctrl+F7: performs the Move command on the workbook window when it is not
maximized. Use the arrow keys to move the window, and when finished press Enter, or
Esc to cancel.

F8 ▪ F8 alone: turns extend mode on or off. In extend mode, Extended Selection appears in
the status line, and the arrow keys extend the selection.
▪ Shift+F8: enables you to add a non-adjacent cell or range to a selection of cells by using
the arrow keys.
▪ Ctrl+F8: performs the Size command when a workbook is not maximized.
▪ Alt+F8: displays the Macro dialog box to create, run, edit, or delete a macro.

F9 ▪ F9 alone: calculates all worksheets in all open workbooks.

▪ Shift+F9: calculates the active worksheet.
Key Description
▪ Ctrl+Alt+F9: calculates all worksheets in all open workbooks, regardless of whether they
have changed since the last calculation.
▪ Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F9: rechecks dependent formulas, and then calculates all cells in all open
workbooks, including cells not marked as needing to be calculated.
▪ Ctrl+F9: minimizes a workbook window to an icon.

F10 ▪ F10 alone: turns key tips on or off. (Pressing Alt does the same thing.)
▪ Shift+F10: displays the context menu for a selected item.
▪ Alt+Shift+F10: displays the menu or message for an Error Checking button.
▪ Ctrl+F10: maximizes or restores the selected workbook window.

F11 ▪ F11 alone: creates a chart of the data in the current range in a separate Chart sheet.
▪ Shift+F11: inserts a new worksheet.
▪ Alt+F11: opens the Microsoft Visual Basic For Applications Editor, in which you can
create a macro by using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).

F12 ▪ F12 alone: displays the Save As dialog box.